I finally got the chance to watch the workprint in full. There are a few nitpicks I think could still be improved which I’ve listed below (sorry if I’ve repeated any rejected ideas as with over 5000 replies its hard to know what has and hasn’t been suggested):
-CRAWL-
“disparate”
to me this word doesn’t sound Star Wars and feels out of place with the vocabulary of the official crawls.
“chasing whispers of a hidden power that would allow him to destroy any threat to his rule…”
A better sentence could be, “chasing whispers of an old menace, determined to destroy any threat to his power…” I think Kylo is more focused on his power in the force rather than his rule as Supreme Leader. Also the crawl should have a hint of Palpatine while not directly mentioning him.
-EXEGOL-
“…in me.”
I like the line replacement but it looks like Palpatine is saying “unnatural“. Is here a way to make Palpatine’s lips match without looking off?
-AJAN KLOSS-
“I don’t want to go without your blessing but I will. I will, it’s what you would do.”
Cut the second “I will”
Change Poe’s “Yeah, I know.” to “Yeah, and we’re going with you.” The “I know” feels unnecessary.
Cut “There’s so much I want to tell you” “Tell me when you get back”
Why would Rey say this? It looks like Rey and Leia know this is their last interaction which in my opinion makes Rey’s reaction to Leia’s death not have as much weight.
-“ENDOR”-
Color correct the Ewok village shot to better match the Kef Bir footage or vice versa. They doesn’t feel like the same planet.
-DEATH STAR II-
Do we know the source of the tracked Darth Vader’s Death music cue? To me is it sounds like the 2004 Sony releases with the heavily compressed strings. Would it be possible to replace it with a better version (maybe abc’s salvage edition)?
I know a full version of Duel of the Fates during the Death Star duel won’t be in this fanedit but I have an idea as to how it could feel natural and not like a fanedit. DominicCobb’s edit has it perfectly just don’t start at the opening Kor-ah horn beats. Loop the string "Do-di-doodle-do"s for the first shot of Rey and Kylo fighting and the shot of Finn. Have the fight continue like DominicCobb edited until Rey lands from her force backflip and cut to this version without the music cue from Solo.
Rearrange the Medal shot from the trailer to before Leia lays down.
-EXEGOL-
“The time has come.” Replace the Sith choir with the first phrase of isolated vocals from Duel of the Fates (“Kor-ah, Mah-tah”) The choir is pretty much singing the freaking first chord anyway so why not?
I just have to say HOLY CRAP THE CALL IN WAS AMAZING! What were the sources?
I really liked the subtle spin of the stars when Rey hears the voices of the past, but it could go a step further. What if when Rey hears a voice and the stars are in frame a star gets slightly brighter (kind of like when the angels from It’s a Wonderful Life talk)? Qui-Gon and Yoda have been floating lights in the animated series when communicating with just their voice so its not too far fetched of an idea to include that here.
I just noticed the updated Naboo shot from snooker. I love the shot and how much it has improved but I do think the movement of the Destroyer still needs some refining. Maybe cut the explosion and just have it fall from the sky while on fire like the other shots have.
Something that has bugged me since my first viewing; Is there a way to rescore the victory celebration as the placement of Yoda’s theme makes absolutely no sense.
-EPILOGUE-
The fade in of Rey’s/The Force theme sounds like an artificial fade in and not as if the horn player is naturally going from soft to loud. (I know it’s a complicated audio edit but I it could have some slight adjustment to the automation.) The fade out to the credits is good though.
To Hal9000 and everyone involved with the making of this edit, you have made something truly special. I was amazed at how much better the pacing of the film is here and I was finally able to enjoy the whole film, not just certain moments. Keep up the good work!